Wave of Anti-Gay Attacks Shows Anti-LGBT Violence is Still a Threat

A number of anti-gay attacks have been announced lately making it more apparent than ever the nation still has a long way to go to protect all its citizens, especially those of the LGBT community.

This past weekend at least two attacks on gay men made national news proving gays are a minority most victimized by hate crimes.

Jared Olson, 23, of Denver, CO, was hospitalized and will need reconstructive surgery after being attacked over the weekend. Olson suffered a broken nose, fractured face and missing teeth.

Upon being attacked Olson said he and a friend were being pursued by a group yelling anti-gay slurs making him beleive without a doubt it was an anti-gay hate crime, ABC 7 reported.

“I didn’t think it would ever happen to me,” Olson said in an interview. “I thought people were more sensible than that in this day in age.”

No suspects have been verified but as the investigation continues police will determine whether the attack will be classified as a hate crime.

Another attack was reported in Cleveland, OH, on Saturday night when a gay New York man was leaving a gay bar.

Jared Fox, 26, was visiting his family over the holiday weekend and is now seeking justice after a group of nearly 20 men attacked him, LGBTQNation reports.

Fox uploaded a video on YouTube the next day recounting the events of previous night and the attack.

The group followed Fox as he walked to a popular gay bar and asked what he had in his pockets. When Fox said he had no money he was referred to as a “broke faggot.”

“They thought I was an easy target,” Fox said in his video. “Anyone who knows me, there are three things you don’t mess with: my food, my man and my money.”

Apologizing for trying to make light of the situation, Fox said joking was the only way he can deal with the situation. He says he is thankful to be alive and it’s the only emotion he can feel right now.

“I’ve devoted my life to education because I believe it’s the only thing that truly matters in this world,” Fox said. “It’s the only thing that continues to push communities forward.”

And though he is suffering from emotional and physical pain Fox isn’t asking for anything else but people to donate to create safer schools. Fox will be running a race to raise money for GLSEN whose mission is to have schools be safe for LGBT youth.

“You can rest assured that I am not stopping until justice has been brought forth and schools are safe place,” Fox said.

The police had been called several times within the hour prior to the attack explaining a group of youths was waiting outside the bar but the police did nothing until the attack happened.

The attack is being investigated as both a robbery and a hate crime.

The NYC neighborhood of Chelsea is known for being an ethnic and socially diverse area, but, in this case, was the setting of the attack on couple Peter Notman and Michael Felenchak this past August.

“It was six of them against the two of us; typical of the cowards they are,” Notman told New York’s CBS 2.

The couple was stopped by two men calling them gay-slurs after leaving a movie theater. Four other men joined in the harassment which quickly turned physical.

“I was hit with brass knuckles down the side of my face, and I had contusions; had to have an MRI, and Michael received several stitches in his mouth where they punched us,” Notman said.

New York’s first openly gay City Council Speaker Christie Quinn held a press conference about the attack the following evening.

“This kind of a thing shouldn’t happen in any neighborhood, but for this to happen in Chelsea a neighborhood with such a large LGBT population is shocking,” Quinn said.

Quinn was accompanied by Notman and Felenchak at the press conference.

“Police are still investigating the assault. No arrests have been made,” Newsdaily reports. “There have been 65 reported hate crime incidents as of July 28 compared with 29 during the same period last year, according to the NYPD.”

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